Don't Call me Snivellus
by Arahnel
Summary: A smirk played at the corners of his mouth, black eyes aflame with grim satisfaction. Severus' interest in the dark arts is tearing Lily away from him. And Potter isn't helping the situation. SSLE, a tad of JPLE.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own the spectacular wizarding world that J.K. Rowling has so beautifully portrayed. Any characters that you do not recognize from her books or Warner Bros. movies belong to me._

**A/N: Here is the first chapter of my very first fan fiction! Please read and review, I will definitely appreciate some constructive criticism.**

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**Don't Call me Snivellus**

**Chapter 1**

A smirk played at the corners of his mouth, his black eyes aflame with grim satisfaction. The vial resting in his pale hands quivered slightly as the deep blue mixture slowly turned to amber. Withdrawing his quill from the corner of the tattered desk, he began to write with haste, knowing that if he left out one simple instruction, his efforts would be wasted and his brilliant potion effaced.

"Left leg of newt. Preferably a hind leg. Sliced _precisely _one inchbelow the knee," muttered the boy as he jotted it down in a neat script.

He continued on, pretending not to notice the scornful glares he was receiving from the girl at his left. She cleared her throat indignantly, tapping her foot in an attempt to get her determined classmate's attention. His expression remained solemn as he re-read what he had scribbled into the margin of his 3rd year potions book. After several seconds of intense review, he pushed his dark mop of hair from his face and looked up.

"Yes, Lily?" he inquired.

Lily Evans watched the scrawny slytherin suspiciously with her emerald eyes. His usually strict face had been altered slightly. His expression was almost _whimsical_, which was certainly a surprise to the redhead.

"Sev," she said sternly, "what are you up to?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just a little present for a dear friend of mine," he replied lightly.

"And who might that be?"

"Sirius Black."

Severus Snape stifled a laugh as Lily nearly toppled out of her seat. Looking rather distraught, she stared at her friend pleadingly.

"Don't even try, Sev! _Please_. Just let it go. If you stop, they'll stop," she breathed, frustration slipping into her voice.

"It's just an innocent little potion, Lils. Just something to put that stupid git into his place, that's all," reassured Severus, though he could clearly see that his best friend was far from convinced.

"Severus Snape, you are remarkable in this class, Slughorn adores you. For all I know, that could be an advanced seventh year potion. I haven't seen anything with that color in the text book!"

Sev unleashed one of his rare grins, mischief written across his face. Lily groaned, realizing that her efforts were hopeless.

"Just help with our assignment then, I find the Confusing Concoction to be rather confusing."


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own the spectacular wizarding world that J.K. Rowling has so beautifully portrayed. Any characters that you do not recognize from her books or Warner Bros. movies belong to me._

**A/N: I know the first chapter was pretty short, but it was kind of a spur of the moment sort of thing. You know, "HEY! Lets write about Severus Snape and his agonizing love story!" Anyway, this chapter will be longer and more interesting. I hope. **

_Jaded Imagery:_ Ahh yes, dear Sirius will be having a rather odd experience in the near future.

_Mother of Tears_: Thank you!

_P.S. Thanks to both of you for alerting the story._

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**Don't Call me Snivellus**

Chapter 2

Laughter echoed through the Great Hall as students sauntered in for breakfast. The dismal mood that had swept over Hogwarts due to the upcoming exams had been temporarily pushed aside and a sort of giddiness had taken its place. Radiant rays of sunshine were bursting in through the tall windows, making sure that everyone knew that spring had dropped in for a long awaited visit. Severus found it rather difficult to believe that his 3rd year of school was almost over. He wasn't particularly pleased at the thought of returning to his odious parents. At least he'd have Lily.

As he awaited the arrival of Black and Potty, he gazed across the Great Hall at his best friend. Her dazzling eyes were barely visible behind her drooping eyelids. She nibbled at a piece of toast, nodding politely as her friend Taylor Banks rambled on excitedly about her most recent crush, waving her hands frantically for more emphasis. Severus smiled slightly, knowing that Lily would much rather be left in peace. Even beautiful days like this did little to vary her grumpy features. She wasn't much of a morning person.

"Staring at that mudblood again, eh Snape?" cooed the cold voice of Lucius Malfoy, the only 6th year that seemed to take notice of the unpopular slytherin.

"Er..no, not really," lied Severus.

Lucius scoffed loudly as he sat down across from him. Sneering, the handsome blonde pressed on.

"She's hot, isn't she?" Lucius said, making it more of a statement than a question.

"Yeah..she's okay," muttered the third year.

As Severus glanced up at Lily, he was quickly reminded of how much of a lie that truly was. She was far beyond _okay. _Her body had begun to mature, and although she had not fully developed her womanly figure, it was clear that she was going to be stunning in a year or two. Her scarlet hair was falling carelessly over her shoulders, framing her pretty face in a very desirable way. When she spotted her friend staring, she grinned and waved. Sev gave a small smile and quickly looked down at his food. Much to his dismay, he could feel his cheeks heating up. _God. Lucius must think I'm a git._

Malfoy, noticing the little exchange, raised an eyebrow and gave his underclassman a vile grin. "I bet she's easy."

Severus was acutely taken-aback by this repulsive statement, but much to his favor, he was saved from the horror of agreeing with Lucius. At that precise moment a screech came from the other end of the Great Hall. Severus must have missed the arrival of the marauders, for there they were, sitting amongst a fiasco of panicking students. He smirked. _Ah. The potions taking affect. _The greasy-haired boy had slipped his precious invention into the goblet he knew Black would be drinking from. (A/N: Although Sirius was arrogant and cocky, he wasn't in the least a dull fellow. The handsome boy had managed to put a rather tricky charm on his favorite seat at the end of his house's table, causing anyone who tried to occupy it to stand up and Irish jig uncontrollably.) As Severus watched, a rather peculiar scene ensued.

The infamous Sirius Black was hopping around wildly on the Gryffindor table, flailing his arms at a miraculous speed. That slime ball of a boy, Peter Pettigrew, who Severus always thought to be quite slow, was laughing nervously, thinking that Sirius was putting on some show for his peers. However, the senseless smile was wiped off his round face as Black let out a perplexing, inhuman squawk and rose several feet into the air before dropping heavily to the floor. Severus frowned slightly. The flying affect didn't work very well; he'd figure that out later. Perhaps he _did_ put too much fig juice.

Feathers began to sprout from Black's nose and ears, giving him a rather foolish appearance. His fan club of bemused girls were ringing their hands and scampering about frantically, hoping that their dear, charming Sirius was okay. Remus Lupin, who was seemingly unaffected by the bustling predicament, had quietly continued to write his Transfiguration essay. A yelp erupted from Pettigrew as Black began to peck at his head viciously.

The teachers had taken notice by this time, and Madam Pompfrey was yelling obscene things (of which I will not mention) as she ran to aid the disgruntled, _feather-brained_ boy. As she did so, James Potter was making a stupid attempt to hold his best friend down.

"Oh for heavens sake, Prongs, get out of the way!!" shouted an exasperated Lupin, finally deciding to interfere.

A bewildered James struggled onto his feet, his hair more unruly than ever. Sirius had been tearing at James with his "talons."

Remus took his opportunity. "_Locomotor Mortis!" _

Black's legs locked and he tripped onto the floor, still flapping involuntarily.

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"That wasn't right," Lily lectured, trying her best not to smile.

"He deserved it," replied Severus nonchalantly.

The two of them were studying by the lake. Or rather, pretending to study. It was passably demanding to concentrate on such a lovely day. Besides, Severus was in a good mood. Sirius Black had been up in the hospital wing for nearly three hours now. Madam Pompfrey couldn't seem to make the boy stop spitting out feathers. Potter had been searching around for the culprit, acting amused if his suspicions were turned toward a Gryffindor, and getting rather vicious if he thought it fit to accuse a Slytherin. Severus sighed. Potter didn't expect his black eyed, big nosed saboteur to be talented enough to pull off such a stunt. The arrogant brute didn't realize that Severus Snape wasn't somebody you wanted to cross.

"You do realize that all hell is going to break loose if they find out it was you," Lily stated, giving her leering friend her sternest look, which was quite intimidating for such a young girl.

"Not if you're around."

"Why do you say that?" Lily asked.

"You know how James acts whenever you're near," Sev blurted maliciously, a strange anger he didn't understand swelling up inside him.

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Lily said quietly, looking a little flushed.

There was an awkward pause as Severus and Lily stared down at their hands as if they had suddenly become extremely interesting.

"What if you hadn't brewed that potion right?" Lily began suddenly. "Something awful could have happened. What did you use anyway?"

"I haven't really given it a name yet," her friend explained, relieved that she had changed the subject.

Lily's eyes widened. "You invented that yourself?"

"You know how I love to experiment."

"Yeah, but you've never completed anything that complex!"

Lily's admiration took over her disapproval. Sev smiled at her awe-struck face. How he loved to impress her.

"It was nothing," he said, a hint of smugness in his voice.

"You're so modest," she said sarcastically, throwing her bag at Severus.

"I know," he chuckled. She punched his shoulder affectionately and winked, making his insides churn. "Come on, supper will be starting soon."

"You go on without me, I'm gonna go talk to Ivy," Lily nodded in the direction of her pretty friend, who was motioning her over.

"Okay, I'll see you later," said Sev, trying to hide his disappointment.

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**A/N: That wasn't as long as I wanted it to be, but I have a lot of schoolwork to do and I wanted to put up the second chapter. Please review! Chapter three should be up in a day or two, and I promise it will be better.**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own the spectacular wizarding world that J.K. Rowling has so beautifully portrayed. Nor do I own the lovely character of Eva Jones. She belongs to Jaded Imagery, who is a fantastic author. (I suggest you read Reaching Violet and it's sequel, Gathering Blue.) Any characters that you do not recognize from J.K.s books or Jaded Imagery's fanfics belong to me._

**A/N: Hooray, third chapter! I'm sorry it took more than a week for me to put it up. I was in Florida visiting my grandmother. Thank you for being patient. **

_QuillSwift:_ Thank you! )

_Mother of Tears_: Oh yes, dear old Sirius got what he deserved.

_Jaded Imagery: _Thank you for letting me use Eva! (Umm..you did reply to my message, didn't you? I haven't been on fanfiction in a few days. I could have sworn you did, but if you didn't I am dreadfully sorry.) When you said that Eva would have died to see what happened to Sirius, I thought that she should have the honor.

P.S. Thanks to QuillSwift, Emoor, and anyone else who I might have forgotten for alerting and/or favoriting! I truly appreciate it!

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**Don't Call me Snivellus**

Chapter 3

Severus sat in silence, enraptured by the morose glow of the fireplace. The crimson flames danced maliciously as they crept over burning embers, luring him with their seductive movements. His black eyes were hazed, his expression empty. In his hands was an ancient, worn book.

_"The key is to being unpredictable_. _Remain expressionless; don't let your foe guess what you are feeling. Especially fear. No one will follow if they sense such a formidable thing."_

The Slytherin common room was eerie at this hour of the morning. Deep shadows lurked in the corners as if they were watching the strange figure before the fireplace. The silence seemed to whisper, dragging him further into his dark thoughts. Severus had been up practicing through the long hours of the night. He was very pleased that he had chosen to tamper around in the forbidden section of the library. With a grim smile, he slowly raised the book to his face, letting it fall open on it's own command.

_"…these foul creatures are the scum of the wizarding world. They strut about, attempting to steal our magic away from us. We must not let them. It is rightfully ours! Those who descend from a long line of magical ancestors are the only true sorcerers. The mudbloods are corrupt, evil beings that only…"_

Severus Snape looked up, a queer sadness suddenly tugging at his heart, bringing him gently back to the light. _Lily._ She was a mudblood…corrupt? Evil? He shook himself and stood, thinking it wise to return this book to the library. Perhaps the author was wrong about muggleborns. Of course there were a few that didn't fall into the category of scum…right?

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"Oh God, guys! I'm not ready for this! No no no, how could the exams have come so fast?!" Lily squealed, pulling on her hair and jumping nervously as she and Severus ambled to Transfiguration. Ivy was with them, but she was heading for Herbology.

"Oh calm down," Ivy said lightly, loosening her Ravenclaw scarf. "I never study for these things and I do fine!"

"That's because you're practically a genius," retorted Lily.

Severus listened silently as they babbled.

"Very funny. I only had five O's last year!" Ivy said, shaking her head at her own disapproval.

"Out of six classes!" Lily scoffed as they walked into the class.

Professor McGonagall's room was lambent with candles and torches, giving it a high-spirited countenance. The tables had been dusted and cleared of all clutter. It appeared as if the strict professor had done her best to make her hesitant students as comfortable and relaxed as possible, but the revulsion towards the exams was not easily forgotten.

She allowed her students a minute or two to sit down and whisper urgently before she spoke.

"I believe that there is no need for me to explain the importance of this test," she said curtly, "You better hope on Merlin's beard that you don't fail."

Severus watched Lily pull out her exam supplies. She turned to him and crossed her fingers, grimacing as she dipped the tip of her quill in forest green ink. He couldn't help but notice how cute she was when she crinkled her nose.

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Severus sighed and read over his essay. After making a few changes in grammar, he sat back and rubbed his temples gently. That last one had been particularly difficult. Studying the drawbacks of transfiguring worms into pillowcases was not very entertaining, causing him to neglect that section of his notes. He gave a fleeting look at the mountainous grandfather clock behind the professor's desk. Two minutes to spare.

Lily had also taken notice in the time, and was now in an uproar of scrawling and scribbling as fast as her elegant fingers could go, determined to complete the last question. Eva Jones, a close friend of Lily's, was concentrating on the redhead's paper out of the corner of her eye, muttering tips here and there whenever Lily looked up at her hopelessly. This amused Severus greatly. The composed Lily Potter, cheating? Transfiguration was not her best class, but he knew that when it came time for the Charms exam, she would easily reach the Outstanding level, perhaps exceeding it. What was even more unusual was that Eva was helping her. Though Severus enjoyed her most of Lily's friends, she was a bit of a snob.

"Time's up. Put your quills down," rang the stern voice of Professor McGonagall, causing a few students to jump. "That means you to James!"

There was a loud clatter as the classroom was filled with the echo of dropping quills and rustling parchment.

"Get along all of you," added the professor. "I have many exams to grade and you all deserve a bit of sun."

All of the students filed out of the classroom, and walked hurriedly down the main corridor to get to the beautiful grounds.

"So Lily, did I happen to see Jones give you a bit of help?" Severus teased.

"I…well, Severus, it's none of your business," she said, a bit flustered by his remark.

"Perhaps I should tell Professor McGona…"

"_No! _Oh come on, I'm sure you asked Goyle a few questions," interrupted Lily.

"Goyle is a blundering idiot," he reminded her.

"All Slytherins are I'm afraid," added James Potter, smirking arrogantly as he sauntered up next to the duo.

"You are very wrong James," Lily said, stopping to give the abominable boy a glare. "I know plenty of intelligent Syltherins."

James ran a hand through his wild black hair and stared at Lily, amused by her comment. Sirius Black joined him at his side.

"Sirius!" cried Sev with false cheerfulness. "How are you feeling? That was a rather terrible accident you had. At least your feathers are gone. Still laying eggs though, I assume?"

Sirius looked about the ground self consciously to see if a stray egg had betrayed him. Seeing nothing, he looked up at Severus angrily.

"You put that potion in my goblet," he accused.

"Well yes," Sev sighed off-handedly. "I thought the chicken bit fit your character."

"_Furnunculos_!" yelled Black with a grin.

Severus felt the painful boils spread across his face. In fury he withdrew his wand.

"_Incendio,"_ he hissed from behind his hands as he covered his shameful appearance.

Black yelped as flames ate there way up his robes.

"What the hell is going on here?!" squeaked Professor Flitwick as he scurried to the scene. "_Aguamenti," _he said, drenching Sirius in a jet of cool water.

Spectators watched in interest as Flitwick waved his arms in the air vigorously. James stifled a snigger. The tiny man looked rather comical when he was angry.

"Dueling like this is strictly forbidden, boys! I am very disappointed," he screeched. "Detention for both of you!"

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Severus stomped malignly back to the Slytherin common room, cursing under his breath. He couldn't imagine spending an entire Saturday cleaning the school's many bathrooms without magic. And adding Sirius Black to the task made the situation even more oppressive.

He went swiftly to his dorm, not wanting to be bothered by any of his cruel Sytherin allies. At first he had thought that he was alone, but he spotted Regulus Black sitting by a window at the far end of the room.

"I hate your brother, Regulus," Severus said nonchalantly.

"So do I," said the boy cooly, not looking up from his book. His features were similar to his brothers, but they were not constructed as handsomely. "He's filthy. I don't understand why he's so popular."

"Damn the little bugger," added Sev scornfully as he punched the Gryffindor lion on the Hogwarts Crest, causing the whole poster to fall from its place on the wall.

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**A/N: There you are! If you read this chapter, please review. Don't be afraid to tell me if you didn't like something, I'm only trying to improve. )**


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